Longer funerals for relatives
Funeral services at two crematoria will be allowed to run 10 minutes longer to give grieving Black Country families more time to personalise services for their loved ones with favourite songs or readings.
Funeral services at two crematoria will be allowed to run 10 minutes longer to give grieving Black Country families more time to personalise services for their loved ones with favourite songs or readings.
Service times at Gornal Wood and Stourbridge Crematorium are to be increased from 20 to 30 minutes from August 1.
The extension will also avoid services over-running. The move has been made to allow mourners the time to make services more personal by playing favourite songs.
Or they have the option to recite poems, as well as singing the traditional hymns.
Many families request such features at services.
The extra time will also prevent backlogs of mourners forming outside the crematoriums while they wait for previous services to finish.
The extension has been made by Dudley Council's bereavement services department after consultation with local funeral directors and ministers who conduct the services.
It means the maximum number of services each crematorium can hold each day will have to be reduced from 13 to 11, although council bosses have insisted this will not have any great impact as full capacity at either facility is rarely reached.
The council's bereavement services manager Stuart Connelly said the time extension would allow family and friends to "personalise" services for their loved ones.
"Families and funeral directors have told us they are having to wait outside for services to finish which is not very sensitive," he said.
"There will be a reduction in the number of services each crematorium can deal with on a daily basis which means on rare occasions, particularly during the winter months, that some funerals may have to be put back a day to accommodate them all.
"It's regrettable but we feel families will appreciate the increased time because it will give them more opportunity to personalise the services."
Top 10 songs for funerals
1. Wind Beneath My Wings - Bette Midler
2. Angels - Robbie Williams
3. Somewhere Over The Rainbow - Eva Cassidy
4. Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life - theme from Monty Python's Life of Brian
5. My Way - Frank Sinatra
6. My Heart Will Go On - Celine Dion
7. Candle In The Wind - Elton John
8. Goodbye My Lover - James Blunt
9. With Or Without You - U2
10. Every Breath You Take - The Police
By Jon Wood
